Saturday, May 15, 2010

East Dillon Dinner Party

Friday Night Lights is one of our favorite TV shows, so to celebrate its long awaited return we had a Texas style dinner party with good friends.  While I was really disappointed that Coach Taylor forfeited his first game with the East Dillon Lions, it was great to see our old buddies of Dillon.  I had fun planning the menu…I wanted that good southern cookin' for my yankee peeps, but also wanted to keep it somewhat healthy.  So here's what I decided on...





Appetizers: Pita & Corn Chips, Salsa, Guac, Cheese, Crackers
Salad: Pear & Goat Cheese Salad with a Champagne Vinaigrette (not southern, but a favorite)
Main Dish: BBQ Chicken, Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Bacon Green Beans, Mac N Cheese
Dessert: Banana Pudding courtesy of Magnolia Bakery and our guests
(A bottle of vino for the ladies and beers for the fellas)

Here are a few of the recipes…

BBQ Chicken Made Easy
Grilled chicken is a healthy food but can be so boring.  This is super easy and makes blah chicken more interesting.

4 Breasts, 4 Leg/Thigh Pieces
Salt & Pepper
BBQ sauce – I like Stubbs

Clean the chicken, salt & pepper to taste, throw in a ziplock with the BBQ sauce, refrigerate for a bit, Grill. (Not sure how, that’s the hubby’s job)

Mashed Sweet Potatoes
I’m not a huge sweet potato fan and I liked this dish a lot.  Sweet potatoes are a super food with more nutrients than regular potatoes.  This was super easy and delicious. 

2 lbs Sweet Potatoes
4 T Butter
1 t Vanilla Extract
¼ C Lowfat Milk or Cream
Salt & Pepper

Peel, cut, boil the potatoes in salted water until soft or about 20 minutes.  Drain, mash, add other ingredients, mix. 

Bacon Green Beans
Green Beans are good for you and bacon makes them delicious.  I tried to copy the green beans at Dickies, which I eat in the airport every time I leave DFW.  I can reconcile it if I don’t actually eat the bacon, but I’m pretty sure that logic is flawed.  Oh well.

Fresh Green Beans (I took 3 handfuls)
6 Bacon Slices
1 Large Onion
1 Dash Red Pepper Flakes
Salt & Pepper

Wash and cut the ends off the green beans, thrown in pot.  Cook bacon a little bit, but remove before crispy, rip into big bits, throw in pot.  Slice the onions into large chunks, throw in pot.  Spice it up to taste and add enough water to see at the bottom of the pot, but don’t cover the beans.  Cook on low for 2-3 hours or in the slow cooker on low for 6 hours or so.

Enjoy!!


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